Meanwhile, prescription drug overdose deaths have tripled in 10 states and quadrupled in four states since 1999; nationally, prescription drug-related deaths now outnumber those from heroin and cocaine combined.

"The rapid rise of abuse requires nothing short of a full-scale response, starting with prevention and education all the way through to expanding and modernizing treatment," Jeffrey Levi, PhD, the trust's executive director, said in a release. "There are many promising signs that we can turn this around, but it requires urgent action."

To make the report card, the report authors reviewed a range of national recommendations for policies to curb prescription drug abuse. They then developed a set of 10 "indicators" -- based on laws and policies found to be successful at stopping abuse -- on which to rate each state. Indicators include use of prescription drug monitoring programs, existence of "doctor shopping" laws, prescriber education requirements, and support of naloxone, a drug to counter the effects of opioid overdoses.

A total of 17 states met half or fewer of the indicators. Only New Mexico and Vermont met all 10 indicators. South Dakota only met two of the 10.

In all, 17 states and Washington have a law to expand access to naloxone, and 32 states have a law requiring pharmacists to ask for an ID prior to dispensing a controlled substance.

A total of 22 states require or recommend education for doctors and other providers who prescribe prescription pain medication. One in 10 Americans with a substance abuse disorder receives treatment.

The report also listed a number of recommendations, including:

Educate the public on the risks of prescription drug use and to avoid misuse in the first place

Increase education of prescribers to better understand how medications can be misused

Make rescue medications more widely available and expand access to effective treatment options

"We must use the best lessons we know from other public health and injury prevention success stories to work in partnership with clinical care, law enforcement, the business community, community-based organizations, and other partners to work together to curb this crisis," Andrea Gielen, ScD, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, said in a release.

There's evidence that the strategies outlined in the report have helped in the states that have employed them -- the total number of Americans abusing prescription drugs has dropped from 7 million in 2010 to 6.1 million in 2011, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the report noted.

Regardless of that decline, the Trust for America's Health called prescription drug abuse a top public health concern as the number of overdose deaths exceeded motor vehicle-related deaths in 29 states and the District of Columbia. Misuse and abuse of painkillers cost the country roughly $53.4 billion each year in lost productivity, medical care, and criminal justice interactions.

David Pittman is MedPage Today’s Washington Correspondent, following the intersection of policy and healthcare. He covers Congress, FDA, and other health agencies in Washington, as well as major healthcare events. David holds bachelors’ degrees in journalism and chemistry from the University of Georgia and previously worked at the Amarillo Globe-News in Texas, Chemical & Engineering News and most recently FDAnews.

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